Chapter 1 - Chartered Mage
“The Great Roads of the Empire stretch out from its beating heart, Trevayn.  Arteries that carry people, wealth and Imperial orders through Her Eternal Majesty’s realm.  Every subject of the Empire benefits from the safe and rapid passage they provide from the capital to the most important provinces and cities of Her Realm.”
Two Thousand Years of Empire by Jahangir Amini
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Mathan stood behind the bar counter, watching the young woman, barely more than a girl really, staring into the distance as she sipped from a cup of hot tea.  Any moment now…  
Just as he’d expected, chairs scraped back across the straw-covered, rough stone floor.  The voices in the common room instantly faded, replaced by tense anticipation.  He glanced over at the three men who’d just stood.  It seemed it was time.  Unfortunate for the girl.  Such was life though, at least he’d enjoy getting his share.
She wasn’t bad looking actually.  Sitting there by herself with her tea and a bowl of stew.  Her face was clean and unblemished, delicate features framed by the tumbles of vaguely curled dark brown hair.  Her deep blue dress didn’t reveal much, but if the rest of her was like her face then he wouldn’t mind a go after Jayric.  If he didn’t know better he might think she was high-born, but no high-born girl of her age would be traveling alone like that, unguarded and unchaperoned.  No high-born lady of any age really.  Jayric would no doubt be telling everyone about how he’d enjoyed the heir to some Great House tomorrow.
The three men swaggered over to her table, Jayric taking the lead of course.  There was something though.  A nagging feeling.  With a small grimace Mathan reached for the cosh under the counter.  This was always his least favourite part.  The riskiest.  A girl with pretensions of nobility would hardly be a threat, but his hand still closed around its smooth wooden handle.  
No, that wasn’t what he needed.  Almost without thought he released it again.  Just a feeling, but…   
“Hey…”  He didn’t think Jayric even heard.  “Hey!”  He tried again, louder.  It wasn’t that he cared about what Jayric got up to, not as long as he got his cut anyway.  He’d given them a hand more than once, but those occasional feelings…  Some people had Knacks and well, when he got those little urges they’d never steered him wrong. 
Jayric didn’t react.  Mathan had spoken loudly enough that the man must have heard, so he was ignoring him.  Fine.  Maybe it was nothing and, even if it wasn’t, it wasn’t like he particularly liked the man.  
The girl looked up, blinking in wide-eyed surprise when Jayric pulled out a chair at her table.  Not the face of someone who should be traveling by themselves, not round here.  It wasn’t a particularly edifying sight.  She was tall enough, but he was a big man.  He towered over her.  His red hair, pale skin and soiled jacket contrasted with everything about her.  Not just her hair, she had the olive skin of a southerner and simple, but clean clothing.  A blue riding dress, unembroidered, but clearly well made.  Very clean actually, she didn’t look like she’d spent a day on horseback.  Or days.  That feeling got just a little bit stronger, tugging away at the edge of his mind.  Everyone else in the inn was making a show of ignoring what was going on, like they always did, but their lack of conversation was enough for Mathan to be able to hear every word Jayric said.  
“You seem a bit too pretty to be traveling by yourself young lady.”  Jayric always did think he was smooth, but really if it wasn’t for who he was Mathan doubted any woman would even look at him twice.  “Maybe you need some company?”  Or possibly he just thought he was funny. 
Mathan tried to look away, but found his eyes fixed on the scene while he rhythmically worked a cloth back and forth across the bar.  The feeling was stronger than it had ever been, practically hammering away at him.  He had to resist the urge to give his head a shake.  It might attract attention to him and right now every instinct he had was telling him to stay quiet, stay unseen.  Despite having no reason for it, he somehow knew down to his bones, this was not a situation to get involved in.  
“Thank you, but I am fine.”  The girl’s voice was gentle, but firm.  A Trevayn accent if he had to guess, if a little stiff sounding.  What it lacked was even a hint of understanding of the danger she was in.  Not that she could do anything about it now.  Certainly no one here would lift a finger to help her.  
Jayric sat down in the chair he’d grabbed, his two goons at his back, before leaning forward.  No doubt his eyes would be roving over her.  Mathan knew what he was like, even with the local girls.  “Well now, see I wasn’t really asking.  More the, you know, telling.  So, you’re going to come with me and if you’re good to me and the boys, maybe we’ll stop at taking your money.”  That certainly wasn’t true.
The girl stared at him for a couple of seconds.  She didn’t look scared though, more confused.  Was she slow in the head?  It would explain a lot, although not where she got her horse and clean, expensive clothes.  
“Bit slow are we?  That’s ok, I don’t mind.  I don’t need you to think.”  
“What do you mean by…”  Realisation spread across her face, outrage rapidly replacing bemusement.  “How dare you!  I am traveling on Imperial business.  You will go back to your seat and leave me alone this very second unless you want to answer to the Throne!”
There was a stunned silence and then Jayric burst out laughing, followed immediately afterwards by his two hangers on.  “Imperial business?  Oh, that’s a good one.  And I’m the long lost son of Her Eternal Majesty, traveling in disguise.  You’re barely old enough to be allowed out from under your mother’s skirts girl.”
It was ridiculous.  Jayric was right and Mathan had no idea why he was so worried, but that feeling was still screaming away in the back of his head.  “Jayric,” he raised his voice trying to project his concern, “maybe you should…”This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
“Shut your fucking mouth Mathan!”  Jayric looked back, with a sudden snarl.  He always had hated being challenged.  “Keep your interfering nose out of this or I’ll cut it off!”
He would too and no one would say a word.  Not with who his father was.
“Who exactly are you goodman?”  The girl sounded a bit nervous now, unsurprisingly.  She didn’t look like she was used to violence or threats of it.  She hesitated for a second and then added, “I think you should stop threatening people and leave.”  She glanced around the common room, looking for support.  Actually… she didn’t sound nervous, she sounded uncomfortable.  There was a difference.  
“No one’s going to help you girl.”  Jayric still sounded angry.  “I’ll leave, but you’re coming with me.”
“The innkeeper tried to help me.”  Mathan winced, that was the last thing he wanted her to say.  
Jayric growled.  “And he’ll wish he hadn’t.”  He grabbed her slim forearm, his hand closing over it with harsh force. 
Instead of screaming, the girl barked a single word.  The world twisted as the sound echoed in Mathan’s ears.  He couldn’t have repeated it, but it had… it had weight.  With a loud crack Jayric’s arm snapped.  
Fuck.  For a moment the world stood still.  Then Jayric started to scream.  
Darrel and Hue drew knives, proving that for all Jayric’s stupidity he’d still been the brains of the three of them.  
The girl had yanked her arm away and was staring with horror at the bone protruding from Jayric’s arm while the common room descended into chaos as the inn’s other patrons scrambled to get away from her.  Was she some kind of hedge witch?  She’d said Imperial business…  Horrifying realisation began to dawn on Mathan. 
He had to try, “Stop this!”  His shout was swallowed up by the tumult in the common room even as Darrel and Hue threw themselves forward.
The girl tried to stand, instead falling backwards over her chair scrambling to get away from them.  They were too stupid to know when to stop.  If he was right and one of them killed her… Mathan grabbed his cosh from under the counter and hauled himself over it.  He had to stop them!
A knife flashed down towards the prone girl, but before it could land another incomprehensible word blasted out.  Mathan’s world twisted as green light flared.  He stumbled, half falling off the bar top when his leap turned into an undignified tumble.  Darrel flew backwards, crashing through a table, reducing it to splinters.  Hue hesitated and then turned to run.  The girl hesitated, seemingly a bit stunned by what she’d just done.  It allowed Hue the time to run straight into Mathan’s cosh. 
Mathan took a moment to make sure Hue wasn’t going to be getting up again and then hurried over to the girl.  
“Are you alright my lady?  Did they hurt you?”  He almost reached out a hand to help her to her feet and then thought better of it.  Who knew whether that would offend her?  Anyway, everyone knew the stories.  Touching was dangerous. 
Slowly she pushed herself back to her feet.  She didn’t seem to be hurt, but where before she’d looked confused now she looked angry, furious in fact.  Brown eyes flashed as she looked around the room.  He followed her gaze to see Jayric scrambling for the exit, clutching at his ruined arm.  She spoke, not words for any mortal to hear though.  A set of meaningless syllables, each of them as if someone had taken Mathan’s head and shaken it like a night guard’s bell.  Jayric froze where he stood, twitching against invisible bonds.  Finally, she turned her attention back to Mathan.
Brown eyes met his green.  She was young, just as young as he’d first thought.  In fact, while her earlier awkwardness was gone, if he hadn’t known better he’d have said there was nothing intimidating about her at all.  
“I am unharmed master innkeeper.  Thank you for your help, although it was not necessary.”  He could believe that.  Her eyes narrowed.  “Why are these people allowed to terrorise travelers?  Why would no one other than you help a lone woman?  Is the Great North Road not safe anymore?”  She looked angrily around at the inn’s other patrons.
Mathan did his best to hide the abject relief he felt at her words.  As long as she didn’t blame him!  He needed to be careful what he said though, she might be able to tell if he was lying.  Spirits only knew what her kind could do.  “Ah… Well my lady.  People are, were, scared of them.  If someone went against them, well, bad things happened.  No one would dare.”  As long as she didn’t realise the truth of the situation.  
A frown marred her smooth forehead.  “What about the Sheriff?  You have one here do you not?” 
Mathan couldn’t help but wince.  Unfortunately before he could think of a safe response Old Jorn decided to weigh in, making trouble like he always did.
“Jayric’s the Sheriff’s son my lady.”  Bastard!  Was he trying to get them all killed?!
“The Sheriff’s son?”  There it was, confusion again.  Was she just that wildly naive?  
“Yeah, I am.”  Jayric spoke through pain-gritted teeth, but his voice carried.  “You’re gonna hang bitch!  Fucking hedge witch!  When he finds out you’re gonna regret ever crossing me!” 
Stupid, stupid, stupid!  Mathan needed to defuse the situation.  If he could get Jayric out of this alive at least his father would understand the debt that he owed him, even if Jayric himself was too arrogant to.
“Forgive him my lady.  He’s a fool, but he meant…”  The utterly unimpressed look she turned on him stopped him mid-sentence.
Jayric however had no intention of shutting up.  “Fuck you! I meant every word I.”  She glanced at him and his jaw snapped shut with a click.  She hadn’t even said anything!
“Who rules these lands?  Who is the lord here?”  
“Ah that would be Lord Allenford.  His seat is half an hour’s ride from the village.”
“Lord?”
“Uh, a Baronet my lady.”
“I see.  Please could someone go and inform him that I would be grateful if he could come here at his earliest convenience.”  Was she just casually summoning their lord?  In his own lands?  Did she even realise what she was doing?  “I would be happy to pay for your service.”  
Old Jorn just had to keep on interfering.  He stood and bowed low.  “Of course my lady.  I will happily deliver your message.  May I ah ask though, who should I say it’s from?”  The wrinkly old shit was probably enjoying this.  He never had liked Jayric.  
The girl blinked then realisation dawned.  “Oh.  Of course.  You can tell him the message is from Ester Mazar, Chartered Mage, traveling on Imperial business.”  
Oddly she looked slightly embarrassed when she said it, but Mathan still had to resist the urge to let his bladder empty itself, to get on his knees and beg for forgiveness.  It seemed like she’d decided he was against Jayric and in the safety of his own head he fervently thanked his Knack for that.  If he kept his wits about him he might actually survive this.  
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Two days later Mathan, accompanied by a surprisingly large proportion of the village’s population, turned out to watch the girl ride on her way.  It was still hard to believe that she was a Mage, but he wasn’t stupid enough to deny what his eyes and ears told him. 
As her horse carried her away, out of the muddy patch they called the village square and on to the north, she looked towards the gibbet where Jayric, Darrel and Hue swung gently in the morning breeze.  Where Sheriff Loran, well not Sheriff anymore, knelt in the stocks facing his son’s body.  If Mathan didn’t know better he’d have sworn she shuddered at the sight.